Sequoits battle but fall short

Kyle Sytsma gave Antioch's soccer team hope in its sectional semifinal.

Alas for the Sequoits, they fell just short against Marian Central at Grayslake Central on Wednesday night. So much for a sectional final between crosstown rivals Antioch and Lakes.

Antioch fell 2-1 to Marian Central (16-4-4), which earned a berth in Saturday's 11 a.m. Class 2A sectional championship match against Lakes (16-7-1), a 7-0 winner over Hampshire in Wednesday's first game at Grayslake Central.

Antioch finishes 10-8-5.

"We had plenty of opportunities," Sytsma said. "I'm just sorry to see it end."

"We rode our horses," Antioch coach Marni Polakow said. "We had kids step up that we were waiting for all year. In the playoffs, I've never seen kids play like this. I didn't want to make any changes because we were riding our best."

After Sytsma's 14th goal in the 78th minute cut Antioch's deficit in half, the Sequoits kept pushing. They had two other quality scoring chances - one off a free kick and the other in close - late in the game.

"We didn't quit," Polakow said. "Our kids were unbelievable to the end. It breaks my heart (to lose). They deserved to win."

In the first half, Antioch hit a post and missed a breakaway.

"We let (Marian Central) hang around and get one good chance," Polakow said. "They put it away. We got flat in the first 20 minutes of the second half. We waited too long (to make a comeback)."

Marian Central's Filip Dyminski scored on a header off a corner kick from Alec Grazier in the 22nd minute for a 1-0 lead.

The Hurricanes went up 2-0 in the 73rd minute when Tyler Lundquist scored on a penalty kick, which was awarded because Mark Olenek was taken down in the penalty area.

"If I don't get it, then we go into overtime tied," Lundquist said. "We've been practicing PKs in practice all the time. I felt pretty confident going up there."

Marian Central and Antioch also played a close game during the season, tying 1-1.

"We were pretty confident coming in, but we didn't want to be overconfident," Marian Central coach Michael Golda said. "A 2-0 lead is the most unsafe lead in soccer. You feel confident and good. Then all of a sudden, someone turns around and gets a quick goal. (Antioch) put pressure on us and didn't want their season to end."